


Stay for Dinner/Stay for Life

by noxelementalist



Category: Animorphs - Katherine A. Applegate
Genre: After Party, Canon Jewish Character, Collection: Purimgifts Day 3, Dinner, First Dance, Gen or Pre-Slash, Jewish Identity, M/M, Prom, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-01
Updated: 2020-03-01
Packaged: 2021-02-26 13:59:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22974037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noxelementalist/pseuds/noxelementalist
Summary: He'd handled Rachel's award ceremony and dancing with her at prom. He could handle an after-prom dinner at Jake’s while the others went to Cassie’s.
Relationships: Jake Berenson/Tobias (Animorphs)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 7
Collections: Purimgifts 2020





	Stay for Dinner/Stay for Life

**Author's Note:**

  * For [muggle95](https://archiveofourown.org/users/muggle95/gifts).

> This is set after "The Change," but before "The Unknown." It draws on 1 event from the Animorph TV series finale- which is its adaptation of "The Change"- but you literally don’t need to know anything about the TV series for this, which is why it's not tagged.

_ You got this, _the red-tailed hawk thought as he flew into the bedroom. He'd handled Rachel's award ceremony and dancing with her at prom. He could handle an after-prom dinner at Jake’s while the others went to Cassie’s.

_ Then again, _ Tobias thought as he morphed, _ maybe not_. Human him was clumsier, blinder. But a bird couldn’t go downstairs in some of Jake’s clothes, hopefully looking good, and say hi to Jake’s Mom. 

The squawking would be weird.

"Okay, clothes," Tobias whispered, focusing on sounding out the words and not on how he felt sprawled out on Jake’s bed in nothing but biker shorts. Because that- that wasn’t something Tobias thought Jake- even if _ Tobias- _

It took some stumbling, but Tobias eventually managed to put on a pair of jeans and a grey, Savage Garden t-shirt he found in Jake’s closet. 

"Right,” Tobias said as he came out of the closet. “Stairs.” 

***

Jake was wondering where Tobias was when he heard the thud.

"Hey," Jake said, walking over from the living room. Tobias was on the floor by the front door. Tobias was...wearing Jake's jeans. And one of Jake's shirts. And black morphing shorts that edged over the jean’s rim.

“Hey,” Tobias whispered as he got up, missing Jake swallowing at the sight of him. “No-nobody heard that right?”

“Just us here,” Jake confirmed. “Pizza?”

“Sure. Where’s your family?”

“At service in the synagogue. Normally I’d be there,” Jake said, heading to the kitchen, “but Mom’s making me stay home 'cause of the _ extra studying_.”

“What?”

“I know! Sure, I’ve pulled all all-nighters this week and had to drink a boatload of coffee to get through Prom, but what’s a little sleep deprivation?”

“No, I, that’s _ bad_, you should sleep, just- you’re Jewish?”

“Yes?” Jake said, entering the kitchen as Tobias leaned in its doorway. “Is that a problem?”

“No!”

“Good,” Jake explained. “Rachel knows, obviously, and Marco was at my bar mitzvah.”

“Right. Sorry, I was just- curious about- stuff.”

“Stuff.”

“Stuff,” Tobias repeated, wincing. “What's service like?"

“It's… service? You go, you sit,” Jake said as he took a pizza labeled _ Totino’s Triple Cheese Pizza Party _ out from the freezer and started heating it in the microwave. “You pray, listen. Sing.”

“Sing.”

“There’s a _ lot _ of music,” Jake confirmed. “Depending on the prayer you'll stand, bend, recite from paper booklets. Then you go home. Go to bed.”

“Fight Yeerks."

"Yes, fight Yeerks."

"Even though you should _sleep._”

“No, because sleep is for the weak."

"That-that is _not-_"

Jake rolled his eyes. "Fight Yeerks," he continued, "_then_ bed, and repeat.” 

“And you’ve...been bar mitzvahed?”

“Oh yeah,” Jake said as the microwave beeped. “And believe me, you do _ not _want to know how long I spent practicing chanting, or putting on tefillin, or helping Mom make sure the catering was kosher.” 

Tobias shrugged. “Talking is...hard,” he said carefully, watching as Jake took out the pizza. “But listening isn’t, and I want to kn-know more. About you. And Bar- they're _ big, _ right? So...so if you’re not exhausted, yeah, I-I do.”

Jake grinned. “Plates are there,” he said, gesturing at a cabinet. “And if you're sure... so, here’s how I figured out how to say the word baruch without choking on the nasal drip from the sinus infection I had.”

***

Tobias had never had a better dinner. 

Not because of the food or the soda they’d grabbed before going to Jake’s room. It was because of Jake-

laughing, eyes flashing- 

running a hand through hazel hair a shade lighter than Tobias’ feathers-

straddling a swivel chair by his desk-

talking freely about- about tiny circular caps called kippah and kosher cafeteria foods and his brother Tom's as a cantor-

Him, lying on Jake’s bed, just... _ listening _ as Jake shared his life, it was like-like the Ellimist had granted Tobias one short night for a lifetime of fun after a decade of suck. 

It felt _ amazing. _

“That's pretty much everything,” Jake said, finishing a slice of pizza with a gulp. "Except Purim, but I’d have to recap the Megillah- ah, Book of Esther- with sound effects, and honestly it's better to live it.”

“I bet," Tobias replied. “It’s w-way better than what I had.”

“I still kinda want to kill your aunt and uncle for being... I mean, you didn't deserve-"

“But now I get to fly and hang out with y-you know, everyone,” Tobias finished lamely, hoping Jake wouldn’t realize what he'd been about to say.

“You know, I never cut in at prom. That’s what you're supposed to do, you know, cut in and dance with your friends,” Jake explained.

“Would’ve been fun.”

“We...could do it now. Look, I even have our ties.”

“...what?”

Jake nodded. “Figured they'd make great souvenirs,” he said, open one of his desk drawers. “See?”

_ He kept our ties. _“You-really? Now? You gotta be wiped.”

“I do,” Jake said, and for a moment Tobias felt Jake felt...surprised, to say that. “Though yeah, I’m probably gonna crash next to you on the bed and nap after if you don’t mind.”

Or maybe it was just Tobias, feeling amazed.

“So,” Jake continued. “Shall we? I’ll even turn the radio on.”

“...Do I put your tie on you?”

“If I do yours.”

Tobias didn’t trust himself to speak, but nodded, reaching to grab the ties.

Jake turned and turned on the radio, slow beats playing out of it. “Is that...”

“_I'll be your dream, I'll be your wish, I'll be your fantasy, _” the radio crooned.

“Matches my shirt at least,” Tobias said after a moment, pinning Jake’s white bow-tie on him.

Jake laughed, flushing. “Slow dance?” he asked, pinning on Tobias' bow-tie.

“Y-yeah?”

“Yeah,” Jake murmured, and pulling Tobias gently against him, the pair began to sway.


End file.
